Tom Stoudt, the authority’s interim executive director, confirmed Tuesday the authority sold three Allen Township lots to the Rockefeller Group Jan. 22 for $4.5 million. The New York developer and the authority had been discussing the sales for years, and last week’s deal was largely a formality.

“It’s been a long process the board identified back in 2012,” he said. “It really is about good planning.”

Allen Township officials approved plans late last year for two distribution centers on the properties, which are alongside the million-square-foot FedEx distribution center already under construction. The lot on the west side of Willowbrook Road is set to house another million-square-foot warehouse while a lot north of the FedEx site would host a 291,000-square-foot warehouse.

The final lot is a 10-acre property that will provide storm water management to the surrounding lots. Allen Township Planning Commission Chair Gene Clater said hundreds of trees will be planted on the third property.

Clark Machemer, Rockefeller’s senior vice president, said no tenant is in place for either warehouse, but the company is planning to begin construction on both sites by this summer. He expects household retailers or e-commerce companies to eventually call the properties home.

Because the authority bought the land years ago with Federal Aviation Administration funding, the proceeds of the sale can only be used for projects approved by the agency, Stoudt said. While the money is not being specifically earmarked for any projects, it will be placed in an account that is being used to pay for planned runway improvements at LVIA, Stoudt said.

The sales are just the latest part of radical changes of the land surrounding the Hanover Township, Lehigh County airport. The authority has placed a greater emphasis on the development and sale of its surrounding properties as a way to support LVIA.

To date, the authority has sold about 360 acres around the intersection of Race Street and Willowbrook Road to Rockefeller. In addition to last week’s sale, the authority sold 260 acres for the FedEx project in 2016 for $9.8 million.

The authority also agreed to sell Rockefeller another 155 acres in East Allen Township for $3.9 million, but the deal is on hold after the township rejected the proposed warehouse Rockefeller wants to build on the site. The township found the development would not align with the land’s agricultural zoning. Rockefeller has appealed the ruling and is paying the authority not to seek other deals on the property in the meantime.

The authority is also looking to develop 297 acres along the east side of Airport Road and on either side of Orchard Lane in Hanover Township, Northampton County. Unlike the other properties, the authority plans to act as a landlord for the property and lease it to a developer. The authority selected Majestic Realty Co. in December to act as the developer, and early discussions for the land include a hotel, commercial uses and office space.

In other news, the authority’s board of governors authorized the purchase of 121 and 131 Willowbrook Road, two small residential properties on 4.5 acres of land south of Race Street for about $21,000. The authority plans to eventually demolish the two residences in order to widen Race Street for the anticipated truck traffic.

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The PPL Plaza, once billed the cornerstone of Allentown’s downtown revitalization, will go to auction as soon as November. Here’s what the bidders are looking at.

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The PPL Plaza, once billed the cornerstone of Allentown’s downtown revitalization, will go to auction as soon as November. Here’s what the bidders are looking at.

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Morning Call publisher and editor-in-chief Robert York is leaving to lead the New York Daily News. York confirmed that he has been named editor-in-chief of the Daily News. The Daily News, owned by Tronc, also announced plans to eliminate half of its newsroom staff. York joined The Morning Call in July 2016 after a 20-year career with the San Diego Union-Tribune.

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B. Braun is expanding in the Lehigh Valley, adding 250 jobs. The medical device maker is planning a 192,030-square-foot expansion at 939 Marcon Blvd. That is directly next to the company's existing manufacturing plant at 901 Marcon Blvd.

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Americus Hotel Begins Renovations

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